Remittances reach US$1.8 billion in October

Remittances coursed through banks grew to US$1.8 billion in October 2011, higher by 6.2% than the level posted in the same month in 2010 and the highest monthly level of remittances recorded thus far, according to Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP).

As a result, cumulative remittances for January−October 2011 reached $16.5 billion, registering an increase of 7.0%, said BSP Governor Amando M Tetangco Jr.

For the 10-month period, remittances sent by land-based workers reached $13.0 billion, while sea-based workers’ remittances contributed $3.5 billion. The top 10 country sources of remittances included the United States (US), Canada, Saudi Arabia, the United Kingdom (UK), Japan, United Arab Emirates(UAE), Singapore, Italy, Germany and Norway.

The continued strong demand for Filipino workers abroad, particularly skilled manpower, helped keep remittances at a high level. Data from the Philippine Overseas Employment Administration (POEA) showed that for January-November 2011, the number of approved job orders rose to 645,775. This reflected an 11.6% increase in the total approved job orders compared to the same period last year. The processed job orders consisted of job openings for production, service, as well as professional, technical and related workers. The bulk of these processed job orders were from Saudi Arabia, UAE, Qatar, Taiwan, Kuwait and Hong Kong.

The higher level of remittances in October could also be due to higher cash transfers by overseas Filipino workers (OFWs) to beneficiaries who were affected by typhoons Quiel and Pedring last September 2011.

Meanwhile, the continued expansion in the number of banks, other financial institutions and telecommunication companies that offer a wide range of money transfer services (eg more payout channels and expanded hours of operation) and financial products has also encouraged higher remittances from OFWs.

Image from Microsoft Office website.